Let me preface this with this - I rarely write reviews, and never have had to write a bad one…read moresadly. I believe sometimes companies have off days, and employees may have a bad day, which can affect one's experience, thus I dont let one bad experience ruin a company's review. But when it comes to my CHILD, you best believe i will never forgive and forget or let our experience be forgotten.
We visited this winery expecting a relaxing, family-friendly experience and instead left with our daughter crying after being scratched in the face near her eye by the owner's off-leash dog.
What makes this especially frustrating is that the winery's own rules state dogs must be leashed, yet the owners' dogs were roaming the property freely. Our daughter was calmly petting one of the dogs with me standing directly beside her when the dog suddenly growled and scratched her across the face. This was completely unprovoked and witnessed by the owner himself, who said absolutely nothing afterward. No apology, no concern, no accountability.
An employee later approached us and said, "Sorry, he's old and maybe didn't like that she was the same height as him, which made him react".....which felt less like accountability and more like an absurd attempt to excuse why a reactive dog was allowed to roam off leash around guests and children.
We also observed the dogs behaving territorially toward other leashed dogs on the property, making it even more inappropriate that they were allowed off leash in a public setting.
My father-in-law is a VERY well known, well respected, and prominent winemaker in Virginia and across the United States, if you know anything about wine, you know him. So lets say, we understand winery culture and hospitality, fairly well. Had something like this happened on his property, it would have been handled immediately and professionally with genuine concern for the injured guest.....especially a child. Watching the owner casually continue on in his conversation with whomever, and pet the dog like nothing happened while our daughter screamed and cried was honestly unbelievable.
In my opinion, not worth the visit for the subpar wine, if you want to take your children/dog somewhere. The poodles were friendly to me, and other adults, until we saw their behavior to other dogs & then my child....The complete lack of concern from ownership after a child was injured was shocking. Frankly, they are fortunate we chose not to escalate the situation further.
Parents should absolutely be cautious visiting here with children or pets. An off-leash dog with territorial behavior has no place interacting freely with guests.
Absolutely shocked and the owner should be ashamed of his actions & response (or lack there of) to the situation.
